Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Interview with Zrinka Jelic

My latest release is titled “Treasured Chest”. It’s
untypical pirate’s romance in which women hiding from the law are pirates.

Do you have
a favorite character?

In this book, my favorite is Captain Marko, a man skilled in
the art of love as he is skilled with a sword. Who wouldn’t love him?

Did you
try the traditional route to publishing, i.e. querying agents/publishers? Yes, both
my books are published through Black Opal Books. It is a small press, a
boutique style publisher, meaning they publish paperbacks only per order.

Do you
belong to a critique group? Have they helped improve your writing?

Yes, I am a member of Romance Writers of America (RWA) and
its online specialty chapter Fantasy, Futuristic and Paranormal (FFnP). My
debut novel “Bonded by Crimson” is a paranormal romance and my work in progress
is also a paranormal. FFnP online
critique group helped me tremendously while I was working on “Bonded by Crimson”
and they are of a huge help with my wip. However, “Treasured Chest” has been
critiqued by my three steady critique partners.

What is
your writing process?

Well, I’m a punster and I never know which way my muse will
take me. I usually start with a quick synopsis and once I’ve even tried to plot
the book, then I never referred back to it. So, I edit as I go, I usually don’t
see past the next chapter, not in the smallest of details at least. I see the
big picture, but only once I start to tackle the job, I can concentrate on the
details.

Did you
hire an editor to review your manuscript before publishing?

I didn’t hire them, the three editors who worked on both my
books came with the publishing contract.

Besides
Amazon, are there any other sites where your books are for sale?

What kinds
of marketing [twitter, facebook, blog, forums] are you involved with for
promoting your book(s)?

You will find me on Facebook, sometimes I tweet but haven’t
figured how to do this successfully. I have banner ads on The Romance Reviews
and The Romance Studio. Also making as many guest blog appearances as I can
possibly do. Marketing is a full time job with no pay what so ever. But in the
end the best is to let the word of mouth do the job. I’m confident in my books
and that people will find them page turners and the I have people stop me in
the store or restaurant to tell me how much they’ve enjoyed reading my books.

Do you
find it difficult to juggle your time between marketing your current book and
writing your next book?

Oh yes, some days I don’t end up doing any writing at all. I’m
just “out there” trying to line up the next blog appearance, the blog hop or a
giveaway.

Besides
writing, do you have any other passions?

Working out in the gym. All kind of ideas pop in my head on
that one hour on the treadmill or elliptical trainer. And then sometimes there
something interesting to look at.

What’s
next for you?

I’m working on two projects at the time, though I’m
concentrating on my current wip “Love Remains” which is almost done. My second
project is a prequel to “Bonded by Crimson”, but progress on that one is slow
since somehow always seems to end up on the back burner.

Author
bio:

Zrinka Jelic lives in
Ontario, Canada, with her husband and two children. A member of the Romance
Writers of America and its chapter Fantasy Futuristic &Paranormal, as well
as Savvy Authors, she writes contemporary fiction—which leans toward the
paranormal—and adds a pinch of history. Her characters come from all walks of
life, and although she prefers red, romance comes in many colors. Given Jelic’s
love for her native Croatia and the Adriatic Sea, her characters usually find
themselves dealing with a fair amount of sunshine, but that’s about the only
break they get. “Alas,” Jelic says, with a grin. “Some rain must fall in
everyone’s life.”

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